Ghana: August 6 Helicopter Disaster – Bad Weather Cause of Crash – Investigations
The August 6, 2025 Z-9 EH GHF 631 helicopter accident, which claimed eight lives, was caused by bad weather, the Investigative Committee has found.
According to the Committee, the weather in southern Ghana on the morning of the accident was poor, delaying departure for about an hour. Conditions in Accra were misty, with visibility between 5-7 kilometres and very low clouds starting at 700-1,100 feet above the ground.
In Kumasi, the weather was even worse, with drizzle reducing visibility to around four kilometres and heavy low clouds sitting just 600-900 feet above the ground.
“The investigations determined that the accident was caused by the sudden loss of altitude and lift due to downdraft. This loss of altitude without change in power or pitch attitude is consistent with downdraft associated with changing environmental conditions over high terrain,” said Captain (Rtd) Paul Forjoe, a member of the Committee and Head of Investigations at the Aircraft Accident Investigations Bureau.
Capt. Forjoe made this known at the Presidency in Accra yesterday when he took the media through the Committee’s report as presented to the President on Monday.
Eyewitness accounts in Brofoyedru and its environs, the community where the helicopter crashed, indicated poor visibility due to fog and rain. Capt. Forjoe revealed that there was no weather information along the flight route available to the pilot.
However, he said the Z-9 helicopter was in good condition and had received a 90-day service threshold extension with the manufacturer’s approval, having reached its 10-year service threshold on May 18, 2025.
“The aircraft on the day of the flight was declared serviceable and duly signed off by the Captain. The flight data recorder reports indicate that the helicopter was in good working condition,” he added.
Capt. Forjoe noted, however, that the aircraft lacked some avionics safety enhancements, including terrain awareness and warning systems, advanced navigation with terrain mapping, and an automatic flight control system.
“These safety equipment could have enhanced the situational awareness of the crew,” he said. “It could have prevented the accident because it would have put the pilot in a better situational awareness mode and enabled them to take decisions that could have possibly avoided this. We have therefore recommended strongly for aircraft with these additional safety enhancements to be acquired immediately.”
On the crew, the investigation found that the personnel manning the helicopter had the requisite academic qualifications, industry experience, and competence to fly the helicopter.
In its recommendations, the Committee underscored the need for the fleet of the Air Force to be expanded immediately. “Tomorrow is not even fast enough. As soon as we can afford, we should do it,” Capt. Forjoe stated.
It also called for the modernisation of the Force through the purchase of aircraft with modern navigation systems, investment in flight simulators for recurrent training, contracting certified aviation weather providers, and acquiring ground support equipment and flight data monitors.
By Ghanaian Times.
